37 replies to this topic

[new english]

Hi Guys and Girls the “What we all look like “topic was very interesting So I thought we could have a similar “what do our concertinas look like” Its a complete coincidence I happen to have bought a beautiful wheatstone raised ebony ends this morning

TTC
Tony two concertinas LOL

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[new english]

Hi Guys sorry if that post appears almost “boastful” but it was not intended as “look at what I’ve bought “I’m just delighted to have found an instrument that can effectively replace the violin and guitar that I’m now unable to play because of my wrist injury and I seem to have developed almost an obsession for everything concertina based and would love to see some pictures of the members concertinas (that sounds a little sleazy LOL)
I remember the first outing of the MV Augusta F4 at the motorcycle show
And I thought then I must be getting old as a pretty half naked girl was draped over the bike and I remember being irritated as she was blocking my view of the wonderful exhaust system LOL
Tony
Ps I’ve been playing the concertinas side by side and I am very surprised at how different they sound ,the rosewood that I thought was warm seems sort of “harsh” but in a really nice throaty way and the action is very positive but requires a little pressure, the ebony raised ends sounds completely different its a mellow and warm sound a bit like its slightly compressed ,very smooth and the action is incredibly light it’s not quite as loud as the rosewood it also has 6 fold bellows opposed to the 5 fold on the rosewood but I can’t see how that wound actually make a difference to the sound or does it?
tony

[SteveS]

Here's a picture of my brass-reeded Aeola tenor-treble, and my metal-ended tenor-treble.

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Edited by SteveS, 05 March 2012 - 04:17 PM.

[Johanna]

A week and a half ago, courtesy of Greg Jowaisas, I came into possession of this 1870s brass rivet reed Wheatstone. (The picture is one that Greg took for me while it was still on his workbench.) It's proving to be a real dream for song accompaniment.

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[Geoff Wooff]

Hi Guys sorry if that post appears almost “boastful” but it was not intended as “look at what I’ve bought “I’m just delighted to have found an instrument that can effectively replace the violin and guitar that I’m now unable to play because of my wrist injury and I seem to have developed almost an obsession for everything concertina based and would love to see some pictures of the members concertinas (that sounds a little sleazy LOL)
I remember the first outing of the MV Augusta F4 at the motorcycle show
And I thought then I must be getting old as a pretty half naked girl was draped over the bike and I remember being irritated as she was blocking my view of the wonderful exhaust system LOL
Tony
Ps I’ve been playing the concertinas side by side and I am very surprised at how different they sound ,the rosewood that I thought was warm seems sort of “harsh” but in a really nice throaty way and the action is very positive but requires a little pressure, the ebony raised ends sounds completely different its a mellow and warm sound a bit like its slightly compressed ,very smooth and the action is incredibly light it’s not quite as loud as the rosewood it also has 6 fold bellows opposed to the 5 fold on the rosewood but I can’t see how that wound actually make a difference to the sound or does it?
tony

I would think that whilst the Rosewood ends are probably solid rosewood the Ebony ends are ebonised Pearwood, or something like that. The Rosewood, being a much denser material than the ebonised wood, will give a brighter/ louder tone to the instrument. But each concertina, and those from different periods especially, might show individual sound characteristics .
Geoff.

[new english]

Hi Guys Gals love the pictures these thing are really works of art
Hi Geoff I thought it was probably a stained hardwood as I use a lot of Gaboon /Macassar ebony in restorations and at around 3mm thickness its liable to shake
But I’ve been having a closer inspection of the ends with a super bright LED light I have in the workshop (eyes aren’t what they used to be LOL) and there are just visible slight dark brown seams?
I often use a stain if it’s not completely black on ebony fingerboards to cover the grey/brown seams and the ends also have that characteristic polish grain look and feel

I think it may possibly be ebony cross laminated? as in one corner it has a slight visible line on the sloping /undulation if this makes sense, it’s also very heavy in comparison to my rosewood one LOL but the light touch buttons are absolutely brilliant and although the reeds respond pretty much at the same speed it’s so much easier to play

I bought the raised ends one as I really want to learn more about the mechanics/acoustics ETC and I did bid on a couple of ebay fixer uppers and then I tried a Lachenal bone button version but I figured I’ll learn more from a well made quality instrument and I am intending to make one ,so it’s the perfect pattern to have the only problem at the moment is a slight “don’t know how to describe it” flabby short flutter? Just before the low G sounds on the push ?
And Geoff many thanks for your help and advice
1910 and 1928 LOL
Tony

[Geoff Wooff]

As a way of discussing tone and how the ends affect it I have included here a picture of two MacCann Aeolas which sound quite different. The larger one has ends made of Brittania Metal and the smaller one has the normal Brass/nickel plated ends. There is a slightly softer but almost Bell like quality to the Brittania Metal model.

The other picture shows the three Wheatstones that I play; Baritone/treble Aeola EC 1927. 57key MacCann Aeola 1916 and 48key Treble ("The Mean Green Machine") 1898.

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Edited by Geoff Wooff, 05 March 2012 - 08:30 AM.

[David Barnert]

I have two 46-key Haydens. On the left is my main squeeze, the Wheatstone, SN 60082, built in the mid 1980s, which I bought in 1994. On the right is the Bastari, which my wife bought for me in 1987. You can see the taping I've had to do on the bellows. I've also had to re-veneer the ends and reinforce the insides of the bellows so they don't blow out.

Edited to add: Although the boxes are different sizes, the spacing and slant of the keys and their relationship to the handrest is the same.

Edited by David Barnert, 05 March 2012 - 11:38 AM.

[Andy Holder]

My lovely new Jeffries. It used to get really boring hearing about people that had picked up a Jeffries in a saleroom for a song, then it happened to me! The old boy that it belonged to took it in with a couple of cardboard boxes of stuff. The auctioneers spotted it and sold it separately but, because it was a cold night in February and there weren't many people there I had a chance. Needless to say, I was very pleased and the old boy was ecstatic, beyond his wildest dreams!



Shame I can't play it yet!
Andrew

[JimLucas]

Hi Guys and Girls the “What we all look like “topic was very interesting So I thought we could have a similar “what do our concertinas look like” Its a complete coincidence I happen to have bought a beautiful wheatstone raised ebony ends this morning

Hey folks, why just the "pretty" ones?

I expect it'll be quite some time before I get this one restored. Still, it is one of mine.

...

[Chris Ghent]

I recently asked Paul Schwartz if we could have a permanently pinned thread with the subject "Pictures of your concertina".

With the advent of this thread in the last couple of days he has agreed to do so. This means the thread will stay at the top of the thread list along with "Current makes of concertina".

Not sure if he will pin this one or start another; my preference would be to pin this one but change its title to something more directly explanatory of the thread purpose. Perhaps "Pictures of your concertina", or "Your concertina photos", something with a noun pertaining to images in the title (apologies to the OP, nothing wrong with your title but the new one might be at the top of the thread list for years)

A big thanks to Paul for this, if like me you don't see many different concertinas year in and year out then this thread is a wonderful opportunity. There are space issues, but Paul has said he will cross that bridge when he gets to it.

Chris

[SteveS]

I recently asked Paul Schwartz if we could have a permanently pinned thread with the subject "Pictures of your concertina".

With the advent of this thread in the last couple of days he has agreed to do so. This means the thread will stay at the top of the thread list along with "Current makes of concertina".

Not sure if he will pin this one or start another; my preference would be to pin this one but change its title to something more directly explanatory of the thread purpose. Perhaps "Pictures of your concertina", or "Your concertina photos", something with a noun pertaining to images in the title (apologies to the OP, nothing wrong with your title but the new one might be at the top of the thread list for years)

A big thanks to Paul for this, if like me you don't see many different concertinas year in and year out then this thread is a wonderful opportunity. There are space issues, but Paul has said he will cross that bridge when he gets to it.

Chris

What do contributors think - pretty and restored concertinas, or along with those currently awaiting restoration?
I'd like to see both restored and restoration candidates.

[JimLucas]

What do contributors think - pretty and restored concertinas, or along with those currently awaiting restoration?
I'd like to see both restored and restoration candidates.

I suspect that different folks will have different desires of what they want to see or show.

• Is it just to let others know what we have (bragging rights, perhaps?)?
• Is it to show the variety of structure and design, or the artistry of the makers? In that case, why limit it to our own instruments? (Storage space could be a problem, but we could approach that limit even with just our own instruments.)
• Is it to show how much beauty one can find in different views of concertinas, even in elements not intended as "art"... e.g., not just ends and bellows papers, but the beauty-in-function of interior views?
• An "editor's desk" of submissions for potential inclusion in the concertina coffee table book proposed elsewhere?

In a nod to those latter purposes, here are a couple more interior shots... this time of an 81-button (80+air) Aeola Maccann.

...

Maybe a simpler partitioning of purposes would be:

• Do you think it should be about concertinas?
• Do you think it should be about concertinas we own?
• Do you think it should be about concertinas we play?

[new english]

Hi Guys & Gals thanks for the contributions I absolutely love the concertina Pictures (Tinaporn) LOL
Tony

[kevin toner]

Here is my 1912 56key Aeola [passed to me from Granddad - Danny - in 2004] and one of Granddad's extras - a circa 1896 60key New Model[purchased 2nd hand for £5 sometime in the past, and gifted to another family member who gave up trying to learn it; and so it was the one I started off on] , i.e. a Wheatstone and Lachenal respectively.

Edited by kevin toner, 06 March 2012 - 11:24 AM.

[Reed Bellows]

Same issue here, Kevin...all of your image files are in a private gallery, so they can't be linked to another site.

Since Kevin has since fixed the issue, I'm editing my comment to reflect that.

Edited by Reed Bellows, 06 March 2012 - 12:06 PM.

[kevin toner]

Thanks Reed Bellows, that should be them up and running! Thanks again

[Chris Timson]

My concertinas are on the left, Anne's are on the right. There is also a Lachenal rosewood-ended 40-button C/G which is on loan to a friend and so cannot be shown. Jim, you'll recognise the Jeffries ...



Chris